I will be joint presenting with Becher Neme of Neme Design Studio. Our talk is a case-study on work we did for the Center Street Parking Garage facade in Berkeley, CA. Here’s the abstract of our talk:

Towards a Data-Driven Fabrication Process

Today’s evolving digital tools allow designers to be more creative in designing new forms and geometries. Adapting similar tools to the fabrication and installation of these geometries helps manage the complexity of these forms and control their costs.

The Center Street Parking Garage is an eight-story building in downtown Berkeley, CA. The facade of the building was designed with nearly 2000 pieces of folded metal panels. The perforation types, sizes, and bent angles of the panels vary considerably from panel to panel. Parametric software was used extensively to optimize the design for fabrication.

First, a detailed 3D model was used to design the attachment system and coordinate the interface between primary structure, secondary structure, and the envelope. Next, the coordination model was developed into a more precise fabrication model.

Panel dimensions and angles were extracted from the fabrication model to Excel, which became the primary source of panel data. Macros were used to reformat the data and generate the panel identification tags. Likewise, the panel sizes and perforation types were consolidated in Excel to a set of 280 panel types. Once optimized, the Excel spreadsheet was used to generate the fabrication drawings and CNC files. Given the tight schedule and small team, the LOA or Level of Automation framework was used to guide the automation process.

Relying on digital tools and automation allowed for the standardization of the complex facade design. Likewise, automating many of the tasks reduced the risk of human error and facilitated multiple rounds of quality control before fabrication commenced.

I’m honored to be giving two presentations at this year’s BiLT North America conference. This is hands down one of my favorite conferences and my fourth time as a speaker. Registration opens soon. Be sure to register early as this conference sells out fast.

Here are the summaries of my talks:

SPLAT! How to Create Effective Training That Sticks

Training is essential to the success of today’s design and engineering firms. However, creating technical training classes and material can be a challenge. Creating effective training that engages learners and delivers results is even more difficult. Unfortunately, many of us who are thrust into a training role haven’t had any formal teacher training. Most often, we simply teach the way we’ve been taught. This often leads to dissatisfaction by both the learner and the teacher.

This session will take an in-depth look at Backwards Design, a learning design framework that starts with big-picture learning goals and works backward to creating the learning activities that will help achieve these goals. The result is a learning experience that leads students exactly where they need to go.

In addition to learning the key aspects of Backwards Design, we will apply this knowledge as we interactively design a learning experience from scratch.

Automate the Boring Stuff with Revit Macros

We’ve all been there – it’s an hour until your deadline and your project manager wants to make one little change. The problem is, this change will take hours of tedious work – hours you simply don’t have. However, through the power of the Revit API and some basic knowledge of computer programming, you’ll learn how to write macros to automate Revit and save a ton of time on your next project.

This session is designed to get you started automating Revit using macros written in C#. We will begin with an introduction to Revit’s macro environment and the C# programming
language. Through exploring the Revit API, we will create a series of time-saving macros that solve real-world Revit problems. We will dive into the Revit Software Development Kit and discuss methods for troubleshooting your macros. At the end of the class, you will have a good foundation from which to start writing your own macros. Take command of your software and learn to program!

Registration for BiLT NA opens soon. Be sure to register early as this event sells out fast.

Other Conferences

I’m planning to submit proposals for a few more conferences, including ABX and Autodesk University. I will keep you posted as I hear back. Are you looking for a conference to attend? Check out my ultimate list of BIM (and other) conferences. There’s something for everyone!

So are you speaking at any events this year? If so, where are you speaking and what’s your talk about? Leave a comment below!